Face painting on TV

Hello guys, greetings from the new member here.

I'm not practicing the art of face and/or body painting, but am interested in it, since I plan to interview a professional face painter for a TV station I work at.

The question for you is... what are the most important aspects of face and body painting, and questions revolving around it, someone not acquainted in it needs to know.

Or to keep it short, what would be the most adequate questions for the guest, to deliver my viewers a short yet informative story.

Thanks in advance!

I think using safe paints that are FDA compliant for use on the skin is pretty important.

I think that is very important to somehow stress that the only products that a professional face painter should use are cosmetic grade both paint and glitter. that acylics are not good for the face even if they say non - toxic it dose not mean OK they often contain ingredients that are known carcenogens which can be absorbed through the skin (osmosis) and cause allergic reactions which is why we have a Cosmetic grade in the first place.

something along them lines - I say this as to me if there is only one thing that I could say as a professional face painter and as a mum I would want someone to tell me so I didn't accidentally and unintentually harm my children soley due to lack of knowledge it would be that.

behind the scenes

e.g the amount of cleaning that goes into a profesional kit, the years of practice e.g. I may paint a great design in 5 mins but I probebly spent months learning how to do that design in 5 minutes.

The years practice, the many customers, the good products, training and development and general comitment to it as in any other industry. Basically it takes dedication.

I say this as honestly anyone can buy face paint but it dose add up to being quite expensive. So for you for example if you look around this forum a bit you will find some stuff that is wow -even for me and many other painters, most of these people/painters have dedicated years to get this Wow factor. I don't think a professional face painter ever realy stops learning mabye after a while they don't have as much to learn, but they are always learning.

Questions I'd ask:

How long have they been doing it?
Why did they start?
How they went about learning to do it? If it was a transition from face painting to body painting, what catalyst drove the transition?
What types of materials do they use?
What's the difference between what he/she uses and your garden variety craft paints?
What is the difference between what they use and what can easily be purchased at retail establishments (i.e., Walmart, Halloween City)
How long does it generally take to complete a piece of artwork?
What can the customer expect by way of a ballpark price range for artwork?
Are there certifications/insurance requirements to be a face/body painting? (The answer is no, but hopefully it will provide a seque for the painter to discuss the beneftis of insurance and the importance of hiring an artist who is continually striving to hone his/her skillset).
His/Her busiest time of the year (possibly how far out should a potential client seek to book his/her for their event/comission)?
How the viewers can get in contact with him/her?


I hope that give you something to work with!

I agree with Lady Jayde and Elantaura Safe FDA approved paints for the skin, and comestic grade glitter..along with all the prep work before a gig, practice, classes, and the cleaning of your supplies afterwards are the most important part of face painting. Keeping a clean and safe kit for your customers.

I agree that all of those things are important but since we were
Asked to supply questions to be asked of the artist we can only
hope that he/she answers the questions in such a way as to forward
Industry presence instead of hurting it. Well, at least Cookie has a
Now has tons of info! Lol

I agree with everything above. I think many people don't understand, when they might balk at the cost of hiring a professional face painter, that as well as high-grade materials etc. there's also the sheer amount of practice that goes into not only painting well, but painting well QUICKLY. I'm amazed by much of the work on this forum - beautiful and unique artwork, produced using skills honed over years with practice, dedication and hard work.

For every face painted at an event or party, there are several practice faces painted simply in order to develop the artist's skills. It's more than just that face.

All terrific suggestions above!!!! Also, I think some parents wonder about not just the safety of the paints, but the transference of disease from one kid to another. People should know that in general, face painting is very safe and the paints themselves have strong antibacterial properties which help prevent any transference. Also, a professional face painter won't paint anyone with obvious colds, sores, head lice etc., another reason why it's important to hire a professional!

Thanks guys, all of your suggestions were of great help for me!

Guess I'll just go along these given advice while interviewing my guest.